あまり~ありません
amari ~ arimasen
JLPT N5 Neutral
Formation
あまり + Verb-ないform + ありません / あまり + い-Adjective-く ありません / あまり + な-Adjective・Noun じゃありません, あまり + Verb-negative, あまり + い-Adjective-negative
Express 'not very', 'not much', or 'not really' when describing a negative state or situation.
When to use
'Not very, not much': a partial negative. 'Not at all' is ぜんぜん.
Explanation
The grammar point あまり~ありません is used to describe a negative state or condition and indicate that it's not very, not much, or not really. It is commonly used with verbs in the negative form and can be used with い-adjectives, な-adjectives, and nouns.
Example sentences
Other forms
Negation Intensity (Not Very / Not At All)
- ぜんぜん~zenzen~N5Used to express 'not at all' or 'completely' in negative…
- すこしも〜ないsukoshimo~naiN3Express a negative state or action; 'not at all', 'none…
- 決して~ないkesshite ~ naiN3Express 'never', 'by no means', or 'not at all' when…
- そんなに~sonna ni〜N4Expresses 'not so much', 'not that', or 'not so ~'.
- まったく~ないmattaku ~naiN3Completely not; not at all.
Corpus examples (60)
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I hope we don't have to wait for too long.
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She fairly jumped for joy.
あの人、酔うと人が変わってさ、くどくど話しだすから、あまり一緒に飲みたくないんだ。
You know, when that guy drinks he changes. He keeps talking on and on, so I don't really want to drink with him.
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Don't expect too much of him.
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Tom doesn't like Mary very much.
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There wasn't much in what he said.
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The couple doesn't fight often these days, but they used to a lot.
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That's not important to me.
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My brother just watches television and does not study very hard these days.
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This room doesn't get much sun.
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Yanni was paralyzed by fear.
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My canker hurts, so I can't really eat.
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I don't really read newspapers.
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The trouble is that I don't have much money now.
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You won't find much news in today's newspaper.
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I don't really like the way Mr. Jackson teaches.
あまりお金がないので、私はこの冬は新しいコートなしで過ごさなければならない。
As I do not have enough money, I will have to do without a new coat this winter.
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Tom doesn't have much money in the bank.
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Tom told me he didn't have much money.
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Your manners aren't very good.
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Tom isn't very good at baseball.
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The vegetables at that store didn't look very fresh.
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People don't usually swim around here. The water's not too clean.
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Tom was so surprised he was speechless.
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He is afraid his wife is not very domestic.